Making Smarter Decisions

Thoughts on making difficult

decisions more confidently

1
©2010 DQI, LLC
This ebook is protected under the
Creative Commons license. No commercial use, no
changes. Feel free to share it, post it, print it, or copy
it.

This ebook is available for free by visiting

www.decision-quality.com.

Thanks for reading.

Kevin Hoffberg
kevin@decision-quality.com

2
Decisions don’t occur in nature. You don’t
find them under rocks or lurking behind
trees.
Making decisions is a profoundly human
activity. Making difficult decisions is a
profoundly adult activity.
This guide was created to help you better
understand how to do that.

3
To make a decision means you will spend
your time, money, and attention to
get something you want
A decision is more than an intention,
though intentions are often assumed to be
decisions. The distinction is important.
For example, you could decide you want to
go to the movies tonight. But is that really
a decision? Not until you go to the theater,
buy the ticket, go inside and sit down. Up
until you have made the commitment of
your time and money, it is just an
intention. You may believe fervently that
you are going to go see the latest action
movie, but it is not a decision until you go.

4
Some decisions are easy . . . Usually
because . . .
You’ve made a similar decision before.
It’s easy to figure out what you really want.
You have “good” choices.
The trade-offs are easy to make.
The “consequences” of making a bad choice
seem low.
You’ll know quickly if you made a bad
choice and will have time to fix it.

5
 For example . . .

Should we have chicken tonight?

What movie should we go see? What’s the best place to go to

see the sunset?

What cell phone to buy?

Should we go swimming or hiking?

Skippy or Jiff?

6
Other decisions are difficult . . . Usually
because . . .
You’ve never made a decision like this
before.
It’s difficult to figure out what you really
want.
None of the choices seem attractive . . . Or
maybe you don’t even know what the
choices are.
The “consequences” of making a bad choice
seem very high.
You won’t know right away if you made a
bad choice and if you do, you won’t have
time to fix it.

7
 For example . . .

Should we put my mother in a nursing home?

Should I change careers?

Should I go back to school?

Should I quit my job to take care of my parents?

How should we respond to pending regulation?

How do we fix a fractured business relationship?

8
Here are the steps for working through a
difficult decision
Frame: Figure out the question you really want to answer.
People: Find people you judge to be credible and ask
them to help.
Process: Do the right kind of work. No more, no less.
Values: Figure out what you really want as a result of
making this decision.
Choices: Identify at least three different, interesting
alternatives.
Information: Gather information that helps you
understand the differences between the alternatives.
Evaluate: Score each choice against what you want. Make
trade-offs between your preferences to find the best
choice for you.

9
Frame
Figure out the question you really want to
answer.
We also think of this as “putting a frame” around
the problem: Your frame is the problem or
opportunity you choose to work.
A high quality frame is one that is appropriate to
your situation. Appropriateness is a judgment
call that is best made when you are able to
choose from several different frames.
The most important aspect of defining your
problem is to simply make time to do it
consciously.
The second more important aspect is to try out
different frames . . . Look at the problem from
many different angle.

10
Involve the Right People
Find people you judge to be credible and ask
them to help.
If the decision involves only you, this step is
about finding people with knowledge and insights
that will help throughout the decision. It could
be these people help you see the problem
differently. It could be they have insight into
what you really want. It could be that they know
about choices you don’t.
If the decision involves others, then these people
need to be included in some way: through their
votes, listening to their voices, and perhaps
showing them what you’re thinking.
In any case, make an effort to also seek out
differing points of view.

11
Define the Right Process
Do the right kind of work. No more, no less.
There is no “right” process to make a decision.
The right process is the one that has you doing
what is “necessary” and “sufficient” to arrive at
a decision you can make confidently.
The only rule is that the mechanics of how you
will work the decision to conclusion will need to
be appropriate to the size, significance, and
complexity of the decision.

12
Figure out what you want: Values
Figure out what you really want as a result of
making this decision.
Values, preferences, wants . . . They’re all the
same thing. They’re how you tell the difference
among alternatives. They are your criteria. They
are why you’re making this decision in the first
place.
For each decision, particularly those involving
others, you need to be sure that “wants” are
described clearly and distinctly. If those other
people have a stake in the outcome of the
decision, you may need to account for their
wants as well.
A good measure of a preference is that you can
put a number to it. That’s not always the case,
but it’s worth trying. Ask yourself, how you
would know if you got what you wanted.
13
Develop a complete set of choices
Identify at least three different, interesting
alternatives.
You do not have a decision unless you have
alternatives from which to choose.
We think you should have at least three
alternatives—and sometimes many more than
that—that are different from each other, are
doable, are interesting in some way, address the
situation, and that collectively seem to represent
the full range of choices.
This is a good place to involve others.

14
Gather information
Gather information that helps you understand
the differences between the alternatives.
The only information you need is that which
helps you understand the differences amongst
the alternatives you are considering. Sometimes,
that information is easily found. Sometimes it is
not.
Information that is hard or impossible to find is
called an “uncertainty.” It is important to
recognize and consider uncertainty when you
decide.
Ask yourself, “What do I need to know in order
to make this decision?”
Ask yourself, “What are the ‘risks’ I see; how do
I feel about them; Is there anything I can do to
learn more about those uncertainties?”

15
Decision making is both art and science. As
a science, it is supportable by frameworks,
methods, tools, models, and math when
you need it.
As an art, it rests on principles. Reasonable
people can disagree on principles, but
these are the ones that our research says
leads to high quality decisions.

16
Now or never!
Good decision makers actively search out
and find the decision opportunities that can
make their lives better.
They do not live their life on autopilot, only
changing their routines to solve the
occasional problem.
They take responsibility for making their
organization better. They take control of
their destiny.
Don’t wait for a decision to be forced on
you!

17
Focus on what you can control and on
what matters
Not everything that happens, matters. Not
everything that matters can be controlled—
the essence of where decisions live. Not
every decision is worth working on.
Be proactive, but more importantly, be
thoughtful about where you spend your
decision making energy. Focus on the few
decisions that set the stage well for what
follows.

18
Divide and conquer
This means breaking decisions down into
component parts; understanding,
critiquing, and improving each component;
and then building the decision back up into
a coherent, compelling recommendation.
Be thoughtful. Don’t jump at the first
choice. If the decision seems hard, use a
process. And do one thing at a time!

19
Seek out different points of view
There is nothing like a little outside
perspective to help you see the problem
differently, see different choices, and to
get some clarity on what it is you really
want.
Don’t stop with people who you know will
agree with you. Find people who don’t.

20
Be tough on the problem and respectful
of the people
Decision making breaks down when
relationships get tangled up with the
problem.
Fear of damaging a relationship prevents
important issues from being discussed,
often creating a lose/lose situation for all
parties.
Smart decision making creates a space to
have difficult conversations without risking
relationships. Have those conversations
early in the decision process before people
become too “set”.

21
Make and keep high quality commitments
Actions speak louder than words. Your
follow-through on decisions establishes your
credibility as a decision maker.
Do what you say you are going to do.

22
Adhere to high ethical standards
Ethics, trust, and credibility go hand in
hand.
You can work the mechanics of a decision
like a pro, and if you do not act and choose
ethically, you will ultimately erode if not
destroy the trust of the people involved in
making and enacting your decisions.

23
So now what?
We’re always posting more content on the art and
science of decision making at
www.decision-quality.com, so check there often if
you’re interested in the topic.
We blog about decision making at
www.decision-quality.com/blog. Stop in and have a
look.

24